Shoe counter



y 1943' V M. F. SULLIVAN 2,319,356

SHOE COUNTER Filed Sept. 19, 1941 INVNTO R M.F.SULLI VAN Patented May 18, 1943 VUNITED STATES PATENT oFFicE SHOE COUNTER Michael F. Sullivan, St. Louis, Mo. Application September 19, 1941 SerialNo. 411,455

v 6 Claims.

My invention relates to shoes and more particularly to an improved counter construction therefor.

One of the objects of my invention is to so construct a shoe counter that the top rear portion thereof will not be pushed out of its original shape by the foot of the wearer and thereby cause. the top line on the rear of the shoe to be out of place.

Another object of my invention is to so construct a shoe counter that when embodied in a she,-Zthe rear portion of the shoe will remain snug against the rear portion of the foot below the ankle throughout the life of the shoe wherewill be maintained during the life of the shoe,

said retaining means being of such material and so associated with the counter that the cost will not'be materially increased, nor will it add bulkiness to the counter or result in the surface of the shoe having any uneven surface.

Still other objects will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved shoe counter; Figure 2 is a top view of the shoe counter; Figure 3 is a rear view of the counter prior to attaching the retaining tape; Figure '4 is a sectional View taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2; and Figure 5' is a side view of a slightly modified construction.

Referring to Figures 1 to l, inclusive, in detail, the numeral I indicates the shoe counter which may be made from any suitable material such as fiber, leather, etc., said material being either a single piece or a plurality of pieces sewed or otherwise secured together. The counter is first cut from a flat piece of material and the blank, after being skived, is then molded under heavy pressure to the shape shown, said molded counter having a wide base portion 2 provided with a flange 3 and a narrow top portion 4. The material forming the narrow top i portion, which is quite thin due to skiving, is

contracted by being v,crimpeol or gathered during the molding operation, said final pressed crimped portion being best shown at 5 in Figure 3 where the U-bend at the rear is made. The flange 3 of the counter is secured to the rear end of the wall of the shoe to thus hold the counter in shape and then the upper of the shoe is so formed on the counter to enclose said counter in the usual manner.

I havefound that the thinner top portion 4 of the counter and particularly the top portion at the rear of the counter where the short bend is located, and which has the greatest contraction resulting in the larger number of pressed crimps, may be easily pushed out of shape by the foot of the wearer either in putting on or taking off. the shoe or during wearing. The contracted material, especially at the short bend, will not hold its original molded shape ii any outward pressure is placed thereon as there is nothing to retain the pressed crimps in their molded condition except what retention is given by the material of the upper of the shoe surrounding the counter. The ease with which the upper portion of the counter, and especially the portion at the U-bend, may be pushed outwardly and misshaped, results in the heel portion of the upper part of the shoe becoming sloppy and thus not snugly gripping the portion of the foot below the ankle as desirable during the entire life of the shoe.

In accordance. with my invention, I provide the counter with means for retaining the upper narrow portion thereof in its original shape so that any outward pressure adjacent or on the marginal edge of the said upper narrow portion 3'03 will not cause the counter to lose its original molded shape. .a strip of-tape 6 which is secured to the outer surface of the counter at the upper narrow top "thereof.

ihe retaining means comprises The tape is preferably of quite some width and at the rear U-shaped end of the counter it is so positioned that a portion of its width may be turned over the top edge of the counter and secured to the inner surface of the counter. This turned-overportion is shown at I in the drawings. The retaining strip of tape is preferably secured to the counter by an adhe sive substance although it may be secured by other means, such, for example, as stitching. However, I have found that a very suitable material is scotch tape, particularly scotch cellubulkiness to the counter and, therefore, when the material of the upper of the shoe is secured to the outer surface of the counter, it will not be possible to ascertain that the strip of tape has ever been placed on the counter. Ordinary scotch tape may also be used if desired, although it has a slightly greater thickness than the scotch cellulose tape and may be noticeable when the shoe is finished if the leather or other material forming the shoe upper is quite thin.

By having the portion 1 turned inside of the rear end of the counter, double strength is given to the top of the counter at this point since there is a layer of tape on the outside of the counter and also on the inside. Since this portion of the counter is the most easily pushed out of shape due to the number of pressed crimps necessary to form the short U-bend, it is seen that the greatest retaining strength is placed at the most vulnerable point where the original shape is most likely to become changed. The tape, as applied to the counter in the manner shown in Figures 1, 2 and 4, extends along the entire upper marginal edge of the counter, and the ends 8 of said tape are turned in and glued to the inner forward surface of the counter. By having the tape along the marginal edge, this edge is also given considerable support and there will be less tendency for this edge to be pushed out of its original shape. Since the tape extends to the forward edge of the counter and the ends thereof are turned back and adhere to the inner surface of the counter, it is seen that it is very well secured to the counter and that any tendency to push the top rear end of the counter outwardly will be resisted by the entire strength of the tape in its longitudinal direction. There will also be no tendency of the tape to slip on the surface of the counter.

In Figure 5 there is shown a slightly modified manner of placing the tape 6 on the counter. In this construction the upper edge of the tape, instead of being at the edge of the forward top portion of the counter, is somewhat below. By lowering the tape, the portion of the tape at the bacl: U-bend of the counter will fit more snugly since it is to be noted that the tape, when in the position shown in Figure 5, will have its center line substantially at right angles to the extreme back surface of the counter adjacent the top thereof. By lowering the tape the supporting effect for the upper edge of the counter at its forward end will be decreased, but since this part of the counter needs very little support, the chiciency of the tape will not be greatly altered, particularly with the added support obtained at the rear end of the counter due to the snugger fit of the tape to the outer surface of the counter at the short U-bend.

Although I have shown the tape applied to a counter which is molded off the last of the shoe, it may be applied just as well to a counter which is molded on the last of shoe.

Being aware of the possibility of modifications in the particular structure herein described without departing from the fundamental principles of my invention, I do not intend that its scope be limited except as set forth in the appended claims.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

i. In combination with a shoe counter which is to be covered by a shoe upper and is molded from blank so as to have a Wide lower portion and a narrow top with a short bend at the rear formed by contracting the surface of the material of the blank during the molding operation, a strip of non-stretchable tape of a width substantially less than the height of the counter adhered to the outer surface of the counter at the top portion forming the bend and extending forward and secured to each of the outer side surfaces of the counter, said tape also having a portion folded over the top edge of the counter at the bend and adhered to the inner surface of the counter.

2. In combination with a shoe counter which is to be covered by a shoe upper and is molded from a flat blank so as to have a wide lower portion and a narrow top with a short bend at the rear formed by contracting the surface of the material of the blank during the molding operation, a strip of non-stretchable tape secured to the counter for retaining in its original molded shape the material of the counter at the bend adjacent the upper marginal edge, said tape extending from the exterior surface of one side of the counter around the contracted material at the bend and to the exterior surface on the other side of the counter and having a portion which is turned over the top edge of the counter at th bend and secured to the inner surface of the counter, the portion of the tape on the exterior of the surface of the counter at the bend being in flat unfolded relation to said exterior surface.

3. In combination with a shoe counter which is to be covered by a shoe upper and is molded from a fiat blank so as to have a wide lower portion and a narrow top with a short bend at the rear formed by contracting the surface of the material of the blank during the molding operation, a strip of scotch cellulose tape of less width than the height of the counter secured to the counter by adhesive substance for retaining in its original molded shape the material of the counter at the bend adjacent the upper marginal edge, the ends of said tape being fastened to the outer surfaces of the opposed sides of the counter and the intermediate portion of said tape extending around and adhered to the outer surface of the bend at the rear of the counter with a part thereof turned over the top edge of the rear of the counter and adhered to the inner surface of the counter.

4. In combination with a shoe counter which is to be covered by a shoe upper and is molded from a blank so as to have a wide lower portion and a narrow top with a short bend at the rear formed by contracting the surface of the material of the blank during the molding operation, a strip of non-stretchable tape of a width substantially less the height of the counter having its intermediate portion secured to the outer surface of the counter at the top portion forming the bend and extending forward along the outer side surfaces of the counter, each end of said tape being folded over a forward edge of the counter and secured to the inner surface of said counter.

5. In combination with shoe counter which is to be covered by a shoe upper and is molded from a blank so as to have a wide lower portion and a narrow top with a short bend at the rear formed by contracting the surface of the material of the blank during the molding operation, a strip of non-stretchable tape of a width substantially less than the height of the counter having its intermediate portion adhered to the outer surface of the counter at the top portion forming the bend and extending forward along and adhered to theouter side surfaces of the counter with its upper edge in juxtaposition with the upper edges of the sides of said counter, each end of said tape being folded over a forward edge of the counter and adhered to the inner surface of said counter.

6. In a shoe counter which is made as a separate unit of the shoe and is to have its outer surface completely covered by material forming the shoe upper during manufacture of the shoe, said counter being molded from a flat blank of material so as to have a wide lower portion and a narrow top formed by a curved wall and said top being provided with a short bend at the rear formed by contracting during the molding operation a marginal portion of the material of the blank having a continuous smooth edge, and a strip of non-stretchable tape secured to the outer surface of the counter at the top portion forming the bend and extending forwardly and being secured to each of the outer side surfaces of the counter, said tape maintaining the original contracted condition of the counter at the short bend and being of such narrow width that it will not extend to such part of the lower portion of the curved wall that folds will be caused thereby.

MICHAEL F. SULLIVAN. 

